oklahoma

One of the most famous stars of daytime, All My Children's James Mitchell, died Friday, January 22 in Los Angeles. He was 89 and suffered from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, complicated by pneumonia. He hadn't been on the show much of the past couple of years, but he did make it back for the AMC 40th anniversary episode on January 5, and that turned out to be his last professional appearance.

James Mitchell was a man with two great careers. To soap fans, he was the indomitable Palmer Cortlandt, a brilliant tycoon and businessman, but also a man obsessed with his family and not above manipulation to get his way.

Have you been wondering what American Idol's Carrie Underwood has been up to lately? Because I sure haven't? Because I don't watch American Idol? Because the show doesn't interest me even remotely? Anyhoo, Underwood is currently appearing in a poster campaign to promote literacy for an Oklahoma-based group called Read Y'all. This is the third year of the campaign, and past posters have also featured famous people from Oklahoma, including James Garner, Kristen Chenoweth, Toby Keith and Desmond Mason and Dana Dunbar. If you were a fan of American Idol but were unable to vote because you couldn't read the names on the TV screen, this is your first step towards a better life.

Maybe 'Naked Guy' doesn't fly in prison. Season one Survivor winner, Richard Hatch, has been moved to a federal prison in Oklahoma. He's serving a 51-month sentence for not paying taxes on his $1 million prize and other income. The judge was especially harsh because he believed Hatch repeatedly lied on the stand.

Hatch was doing time at the Plymouth County Correctional Institution in Massachusetts and he was inexplicably moved to the federal transfer center in Oklahoma and it's not clear whether he'll serve the remainder of his sentence there or be moved elsewhere. When he was sentenced, he requested to serve his time either in Rhode Island or Florida, to be near his family.